Digicross: THe Devil Meteor of Oore!
by Patrick O'Shea
Summary: Kyoko, Yohko, and Becca travel to Oore to recover a kidnapped Tsunemon from a mysterious group.
1. Chapter 1

Normally, Noriko would have clobbered Cody for staring. However, as she was also staring at the girl in the center of the dojo, she decided that her husband could be forgiven. 

Yohko Tachikawa just smiled back, brushing a bright yellow lock of hair out of her eyes. "What? I got tired of dyeing it brown."

From the corner, a small ball of fur hopped up and down. "You better believe it," Tsunemon called. "She spent two hours in the shower last night."

"Oh, shush," Yohko sighed. "Weren't you the one who told me to be myself?"

"Well, yes," Cody admitted. "Forgive me. I had gotten used to your other hair colour."

"Well...that was in the past. May we start, Hida-sensei?"

"Well," Cody huffed, "as long as I have -your- permission..."

-  
** Digicross: The Devil Meteor of Oore**

_Some ideas taken from:  
Digimon Season 1 and 2  
GURPS Japan   
Pokemon Colosseum and Pokemon XD   
Sakura Taisen TV and Sakura Taisen V Episode 0   
Magic Knights Rayearth _  
--

Outside the dojo, Kyoko Kamiya focused entirely on the task at hand; cleaning off the sweat on the Ponyta that Yohko had just finished riding.

The fire-horse pokemon, named 'Rally' by Yohko, had a strong bond with Yohko already; Tsunemon joked that he should try DNA digivolving with Rally, rather than another digimon.

Yohko Tachikawa, Kyoko thought to herself. Attractive, cheerful, upbeat, every bit the image of her mother, save for the blonde hair. Add in a bit of Matt's willpower/stubbornness and personality...Yeah, Kyoko decided. I'm jealous. WHo wouldn't want to be her.

A few feet away, a small white creature rested. Looking like a small puppy, with a few hints of...cat-ness?...in it. Salamon looked up. "Kyoko? Everything OK?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah. Just woolgathering."

"Hmph. Stop comparing yourself to her." At Salamon's words, Kyoko stiffened slightly. "I already told you, you're smarter and cuter. Once the novelty wears off, you'll be the best-looking digidestined again."

Kyoko had to smile at her partner's slightly mocking tone. Since the affair with the Dark Spore, she had been wracked with guilt and self-doubt, despite assurances that everything that had happened was not her fault, and that the spore had been, quite definitely, taken care of. She wasn't so sure. She was sure that she could feel a few dark things in the back of her soul. The worst of it, in her mind, was Salamon's regression; after coming back, she had not been able to digivolve back to Gatomon. Plus she missed her sisters (well, she amended, one actual sister and an honorary one, but she loved Hitomi as much as she did Ryoko). Who were both doing just fine without her.

"Yeesh. What's next, apologizing to everyone?"

"That-" Kyoko forced herself to stop. She stopped brushing Rally, and slumped down to the ground, arms folding around her knees.

Salamon padded over. "I'm sorry, Kyoko. It's just...you have to snap out of this depression. The last thing we need is another Ken."

Kyoko managed a small laugh. "Thanks Salamon. And I do appreciate it. It's just nice to get away from everything. Mom and dad..."

"Yeah, they were getting a little intense for a while. And I like it here. It's quiet." the small digimon grinned as a series of shouts and grunts came from the small low building several dozen yards away. "Tsunemon told me Yohko took first in the regionals last week."

"Yeah, I heard," Kyoko agreed, smiling a bit more. "What is it Akira called her?"

"Samurai cowgirl," Salamon sighed.

--Some distance away

"Target sighted. Confirm three known digidestined, one possible. Subject in sight is Kyoko, partner Gato...correction, Salamon."

"Forget them, they're tainted. I need a pure digimon," a voice over the radio the spy carried spoke. "The other girl, Yohko. Her partner will do nicely."

"She is currently with a high level-"

"I don't care," the voice ordered. "Bring the digimon and, if possible, the girl. The rest are expendable."

"Understood." There was a click as the radio switched off. The spy twisted around. "Five minutes, then attack. Pattern C."

The group of...things shifted, almost eager to fight.

--

Cody stopped, eyes diverted by some unknown sense. He still blocked Yohko's attack, then motioned for her to stop.

Yohko, for all her training and experience, had not developed very far that mysterious acuity, that 'seventh sense' that the more mystically minded spoke of which warned one of imminent danger. She was able to pick up on the change in her teacher's stance

Cody thought for a few fractions of a second, then made his decision. "Come with me. Do not stray from my side unless I tell you to."

"It's not Mary or Read," Yohko replied. It was more a statement than a question.

"Something worse," Cody agreed. Silently, he wished that Patamon and TK were not in the Digital World right now. He had a feeling he could use the help.

"Don't forget me," Tsunemon said. "I can fight."

"Follow Yohko's instructions."

"Aww..."

--

"Kyoko," Salamon snapped. Instantly, Kyoko stood up, looking around nervously. She could tell from her partner's voice that something was wrong. A second later, Cody and Yohko came out of the dojo, weapons drawn.

"Kyoko, get inside!"

"Yohko," Kyoko gasped. Salamon leaped into her arms, and the two started heading for the dojo.

"Not so fast!" A tall, gaunt man strode into view. Accompanying him were two pokemon, a Golduck and a Zangoose. "We just want one thing. Turn over the digimon Tsunemon. Or else."

Yohko glared at the stranger. "Pretty gutsy, just walking up and demanding a digimon. May I at least know your name?"

The man grinned. "Raymond, the beast-tamer. And I look forward to taming your beast, Yohko Tachikawa."

"Not interested," Yohko growled back. "Kyoko, get to cover," she hissed.

"But...those pokemon with him...You can't see it?" Yohko and Cody, who had overheard the conversation, glanced at the pokemon.

"See what," Cody asked.

"That...black aura around them..."

Raymond heard this, and seemed startled. "You can see the shadow aura...Change of plans. Tsunemon and you two," he indicated Kyoko and Salamon, "come with me, and there's no trouble."

"Too late for that," Cody said angrily. "Armadillomon." Cody's partner charged forward, Diamond Shell attack aimed right at the stranger. The Zangoose jumped in Armadillomon's path and swatted the digimon away. Armadillomon struck the side of the stable and slid down. "Armadillomon!"

"Our shadow pokemon are much stronger than any digimon you can bring against us, old man." Raymon sneered. "Just hand it over, kid. I-" he yelped as a blast of fire was flung at him.

"Rally," Yohko grinned. "Thanks." The Ponyta whinnied, then got ready to attack again.

"Golduck," Raymond snapped. Obediently, the water pokemon trotted forward, aiming at the Ponyta. "Hydro Pump." A huge gout of water shot out; incredibly, Rally managed to do a standing jump, the stream of water passing under him and blowing a hole in the side of the stable. "Again, at the geezer!"

Yohko gasped as Golduck's second shot flew at Cody. There was a sound of a sword being drawn, then an oddly muted chopping motion. When she opened her eyes a moment later, Cody still stood there, katana out, Golduck's attack split in two, splashing out over the field behind him. She noticed that her sensei's digivice was glowing slightly. "H...how...?" She then noticed Armadillomon, up but standing oddly still.

"The bond between digimon and human takes on many forms, Yohko," Cody almost whispered. "In time, you may learn to do the same." In a louder voice, he addressed Raymond. "You've worn out your welcome. Leave." He stopped, realizing why Raymond was grinning. Turning, he saw Yohko, seated and back against a section of fence, one of Zangoose's claws at her throat. "You-"

"Now, now, geezer. Like I said, hand over the Tsunemon." Raymond's eyes flickered from Cody to the digimon in question. Yohko was ignored.

"No pokemon would ever harm a human," Cody growled. "Unless their trainer was a true monster."

"Shadow pokemon," Raymond repeated. "Their hearts are closed. I-" Several things then happened at once.

Kyoko was on the edge of panic. Not only was Zangoose about to crush her throat, she could almost experience the pokemon's feelings. The dark aura around it was so familair in a way, terrifyingly like her own experiences with the dark spore she had recently come in contact with. "No," she whimpered. Beside her, Salamon, quickly knocked unconscious while Cody was occupied. "please...please STOP IT," she screamed. As she did, there was a brief flare of light from her, dizzying the Zangoose. Salamon, just now recovering, suddenly felt drained and passed out again.

Simultaneously, Yohko drew her shinai, tucked until now in her belt, and charged. It swung out, stopping just under Raymond's chin. Following up, Cody sheathed his own blade, drew the sheathed weapon from his belt, and struck Raymond on his head, then followed with a swift, and rahter brutal, kick to the man's knee. "What," Cody gasped as a spike of pain drove through his foot. he stepped back, horrified at what he saw. The part of Raymond he had struck had crumbled, leaving a bright ebony material underneath. "C...control spire!"

"You peeked." Raymond's eyes glowed. The earth rumbled. Four massive Steelix exploded out of the ground, throwing all the defenders down. There was a cry; a Scizor had appeared behind Tsunemon and grabbed him, claw clamped onto the small digimon's horn. "When next you see him, he won't recognize you," he taunted. The Steelix he was on screeched, the noise forcing everyone to wince in agony. There was a loud blast, then blackness.

--

"Yohko...Yohko!" Kyoko shook her friend, while Noriko tended to her husband. Slowly, Yohko came to, managing to sit up. "Wh...what happened?"

Kyoko nodded to several red and white spheres. "That man used several Voltorbs to cover his escape." Yohko's eyes went wide. "He got away with Tsunemon," she confirmed.

Yohko closed her eyes, took a deep breath, then opened her eyes again. "Right," she said, forcing herself up. Rally trotted over. "I'm going after them."

"Mrs. Hida already notified the authorities," Kyoko said, already knowing it was useless to argue.

"Tsunemon is my partner and my responsibility. I'm not going to let some deranged psycho take him away from me."

"Y...Yohko," Cody groaned, standing up. "He's not human. When I struck him, a piece of his shell came off; underneath was what looked like a control spire. He may have other powers, and controlled pokemon to attack you with."

"I'm not going to lose Tsunemon. I'm sorry sensei." Yohko started to turn away.

"Wait," Cody said. He shook his head ruefully. "I see your father's had a strong influence on you."

"Well...at least I didn't get his looks."

"Uhh...Yohko? Hida-sensei?" Kyoko, still dazed Zangoose in her arms, looked at the two. "What happened?"

Cody started to step forward, then staggered. "Rrr...sprained, I think." He glanced at his wife. "Noriko, get Rally's gear, and...the other thing."

"Cody!"

"Noriko...there's no choice. I can't stop you, can I?"

"Us," Kyoko said. "I saw...something around the pokemon that man was using. It's still around this Zangoose, but it's weaker. And...it felt like the dark spore. A bit."

Salamon nodded. "I can't see it, but I can feel it. I think Kyoko broke whatever hold that guy had on Zangoose."

Cody nodded. "Go then." Noriko reappeared, carrying a saddle and something long and slightly curved wrapped in a dark cloth. Cody took the object and hobbled over to Yohko; Kyoko helped Noriko get the saddle on Rally. "You have progressed rapidly in your studies. You are still a bit rash, but I think you are ready for the responsibility." Carefully, he unwrapped the cloth. "I had this bokken carved from an ironwood tree in one of the nearby mountains. It is strong yet flexible. And, if handled carelessly, very lethal." Cody fixed Yohko with an intense stare. "Do not disappoint me, Yohko."

Despite her anxiety, Yohko shuddered as her sensei's eyes bored into her. "I will not. I swear." Cody continued staring at Yohko for a full five seconds, then nodded. He handed her the cloth wrapping, in reality a simple, yet well-stitched sheath, which Yohko tied to her waist. "Both bokken and sheath have been treated to be fire resistant. Still, be careful when riding on Rally."

"Thank you," Yohko whispered. She heard some clattering. Kyoko had gotten her bike out, and had loaded Salamon into the small basket in front. Contrary to Kyoko's personality, the bike was a fairly rugged mountain bike, more suited for the rough terrain around Cody's home than speed. "Think you can keep up?"

"Just wait'll I digivolve," Salamon said. "Then you'll see something."

Yohko smiled, relaxing a bit. "Come on. We have to find Tsunemon."

--

"Hold STILL!" Raymond jumped back, furious. He was losing the half-hour or so of lead time he had estimated, all spent fighting a...pink ninja? "Why won't you go DOWN?"

"You've got the charm of a car wreck," the attacker replied between breaths. "I won't let you steal another digimon."

"You don't have a choice," a voice came from behind the ninja.

"Miriam," Raymond growled. "Took you long enough."

"Oh, such rudeness," the woman said, leaping over Raymond and landing between him and his attacker. "And after I came all the way from Oore." She giggled, sensing Raymond's startled expression. "Please. You think this little one will last? Come, little mystery girl. Show me what you have to offer."

"This." A second pink and grey attacker appeared out of nowhere, throwing a punch at Miriam. A kick followed, then a swipe with a curved metal claw. Each was dodged.

"Ooh," Miriam squealed, delighted. "Two of you. This -is- going to be a treat." She jumped again, this time with her hands flung wide. A hail of black crystal darts appeared, shooting at the newcomer. They were dodged, quite easily given the attacker's apparent grace.

"Will you stop fooling around?" Raymond tried to duck back as the first attacker pressed in. "Just get us out of here!"

"But I'm having so much fun," Miriam pouted. "Oh, dear, Raymond," she continued. "What has the professor said about picking at that?" As she spoke, she caught her attacker with a vicious roundhouse kick. "Mmm...feels like a digimon. You'd look good in our collection, sweetie." She closed, too eager, but was forced back by a powerful swipe by the digimon, metal blade carving a large gash, leaving a long black trail on her defending arm. "Ah! How rude, now I look indecent! Well," she grinned. "I love a challenge."

"Sledge Dash!" Salamon ploughed into Miriam's damaged arm, then bounced off. "Puppy Howling!" A sonic blast threw Miriam back slightly, also catching Raymond in its effect.

Yohko rode up on Rally, bokken already drawn. "Where's Tsunemon!"

Miriam squealed in delight. "A ninja and a samurai! Raymond, isn't this cool?"

"Get. Us. OUT OF HERE!" Still pouting, Miriam took out a small device.

Kyoko rode up on her bike, saw what Miriam was holding. "Stop her," she screamed.

The first attacker reacted first, taking something out of a pocket and hurling it at Miriam. It was dodged, and Miriam, Raymond, Steelix, Scizor, and Tsunemon were all swallowed up. "Tsunemon!" Yohko leaped off of Rally and ran towards the vanishing field of energy.

"Come to Oore," Miriam taunted. "I'll have lots of good treats for you, samurai-chan." The field vanished just as Yohko reached it. Crushed, Yohko fell to her knees, fist pounding into the ground.

"Escape pad," the digimon snarled. "One of Donald's no doubt."

"Yeah," the other person said, pulling her mask off and revealing a pretty face surrounded by a tangled mess of brown hair. "I'm Becca, that's my partner Tururiemon. I think we're after the same thing."

--1 day later.

Mimi Tachikawa looked at her daughter, already knowing she was going to lose this argument. "There's nothing I can do to change your mind, is there?"

"I'm sorry, mom. I have to find Tsunemon. Becca said that she knows people over in Oore, and that we'd have a place to stay."

Matt frowned. "I don't like it. Oore's been pretty closed up for the last few decades now. I don't think we can even get a digiport over there. And she said that this Team Cipher was behind it all?"

"Yeah. Mom, dad...I don't want to fight."

Her father stepped forward. "Fine. Just...be careful, alright? You need anything, just let us know, alright? We'll come charging in."

A short distance away, Becca watched the scene, hint of melancholy apparent. "Becca?" Kyoko walked over, backpack slung over one shoulder, Salamon in her arms. "So...how did you do all that stuff?"

"Well," Becca replied, "I raise my foot until it makes contact with a face. It usually works." She sighed slightly. "It looks more impressive than it really is; that woman Miriam would have taken me apart in a second."

"That's what I'm here for!" Lopmon waved to get Kyoko and Salamon's attention. "When I'm not kicking butt as Tururiemon, I'm showing Becca how to do the same!" Becca affectionately scratched Lopmon between the ears. "Keep telling you I'm not a dog...hey, I didn't say stop!"

"You seem to have a friend," Becca observed, seeing the same Zangoose that had been recently one of Raymond's Shadow Pokemon. The Zangoose seemed to be in a bit of a daze still.

"I...I think I broke whatever Raymond did to him. I don't know how, but I thihnk it's getting better the longer it stays with me. Mom and dad let me keep it, in case there was trouble. Plus...I want to see if I can free the other pokemon Raymond has under his control. I felt it, felt what he did to them. It was disgusting."

"It is. Well, there's three of us-"

"SIX!" Lopmon and Salamon chorused. Zangoose seemed startled by the attention.

"Alright six," Becca amended. "And only three of them. Sounds about right."

Kyoko looked back to where her own parents, now resigned to seeing their eldest children leave home to save the world, waved a bit sadly. She waved back. "Well, let's get going then."

_Next Episode: Showtime!_


	2. Chapter 2

The landing went okay. Yohko, Kyoko, and Becca all managed to get off of the boat without incident. Once clear of the docks, Kyoko and Becca let their partners out of their hiding place, which happened to be a rather old and well-worn backpack Yohko had had the bad luck to carry.

"Gahh. That stunk," Salamon griped. "What has you been -eating?"

"Unlike you, liver and onion breath," Lopmon replied, "I've been eating a healthy diet of-"

"Whatever she comes across." Becca completed with a smirk. "We'd better get going. CIPHER was able to get some agents into this town when I left, and that was a few months ago. I don't know how much further they've extended their control."

"How big is this CIPHER?" Yohko asked.

"Big," Becca replied. "They have a stranglehold on Orre now. We'd better move quickly. You two got the lists?"

Kyoko nodded. "Food, supplies, some extra clothes. But why aren't you coming with us?"

"I'm a bit too well known here. I caused some trouble when I left Gateon Port."

"Meaning she beat the stuffing out of a CIPHER agent. Who just happened to be the chief of police." The two Kanto natives winced. "You do know that ninja are supposed to be subtle."

"We're also assassins," Becca snapped, then flushed, embarassed. "Sorry. I just...I have to go." She left without saying another word.

Lopmon looked in the direction Becca had gone. "She didn't mean that," Lopmon explained, then followed, leaving the two girls and one digimon looking confused, and a bit shaken.

--

Digicross: The Devil Meteor of Oore part 2 -'Showtime!'

Pokemon created by Satoshi Tajiri Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness: Nintendo Digimon created by Bandai Other ideas/inspirations/characters come from:  
Sakura Taisen V: Sega Gaogaigar/Gaogaigar Final: Sunrise Street Fighter: Capcom

--

Kyoko and Yohko walked down the road, a little nervous. Gateon Port was a magnificent city, and there were signs that it was once a thriving community; a number of hotels and restaurants could be seen, as could several small shops offering the usual tourist trap items, and some more useful items that the two could use.

But the atmosphere was depressed, almost oppressive. There was no one on the street, save for the odd group of intimidating looking men in dark outfits; Kyoko found herself reminded of the Team Rocket uniforms she had read about in history class. Not even a car could be seen on the street, only the occasional heavy truck. Windows were shuttered, half of the hotels and restaurants were either closed or long vacant, the signs over the doors faded and uncared for.

More, neither of them had seen a single pokemon. Even the densest cities that they had been to had had at least a few pokemon wandering around, if only to scrounge from leftovers and trashcans, or let out by trainers to exercise or battle. Kyoko shivered; "Yohko, I don't feel well. This place feels all wrong, for some reason."

"I'm a bit creeped out too. I..." Yohko trailed off as she glanced at Kyoko, looking around. Salamon, following behind her, looked at her partner worriedly. "Kyoko? What is it?"

Kyoko stopped, leaning against a wall. "I don't know. It's like there's something pressing against my mind. It felt a bit like when I saw that aura around Zangoose. Only this is more general."

Yohko's eyes narrowed, senses suddenly searching for anything out of the ordinary. "Those three did say they had mroe of those shadow pokemon with them. Come on, let's get out of here." The trio picked up the pace. Seemingly unnoticed, a small group of figures carefully followed them.

--

Wiping a tear away, Becca stood up in front of the small stone monument. "This is all that remains of the Pokemon Graveyard that once stood just outside Gateon," she whispered. "Before Cipher..."

"Before they destroyed it." Lopmon said quietly. "Will you be OK?"

"...No. Not until I've settled things with those...things."

"We've settled," Lopmon amended. "We can't really do that until we take care of the three goons Hamilton has working for him." The small digimon sighed. "Well, they're not human, so I guess we can cut loose on them."

"Yeah. Like they did to..." Becca trailed off, sudnly gripped by sadness. Lopmon looked up sympathetically, but said nothing.

A minute later, there was a small knock on the door. "Becca?" a man asked, sticking his head in. Becca glanced at the speaker. "I think your friends might need you. She senses something's up."

Becca didn't have to ask who 'she' was. "I swear," she sighed, her mood recovered. "I can't take those two anywhere. Thanks, Kosuke." She arched an eyebrow as Kosuke Entouji grinned and scratched his head, a small flurry of dandruff dislodging itself in the process. "She's not going to be pleased, you know."

"No time to take care of it, and you know how supplies are these days." Kosuke Entouji sighed, looking around the room. "We'll have to move this place soon. You'd better get your friends together; she thinks things are going to go bad very quickly out here." Becca nodded.

--

Kyoko started to ask Yohko something, but the swordswoman motioned for her to stay quiet. She could feel Salamon tense up, and felt her own pulse racing a bit.

"We're being followed," Yohko whispered. "Stay with me. Hopefully, we can make it out of town without starting anything."

"That's far enough," a familiar voice announced. Raymond stepped out of the shadows. "I see you lost your friend. And here I thought she was some sort of ninja," he sneered. "Well, I'll make this simple. You walk, we take your friend and her digimon. We'll even make sure that Tsunomon is treated nicely. For a while." Beside Raymond was an aggressive looking creature. "Breloom should be more than a match for you without your little ninja friend."

Kyoko flinched. "Yohko, that Breloom's got an aura like Zangoose had," she whispered. Yohko nodded. "What are you doing to that pokemon? Can't you see that you're hurting it?"

Raymond shrugged. "Well, no pain, no gain, right? And besides, Breloom's lost all feeling, including pain. He'll just go on until...well, until he's stopped."

Yohko drew her wooden sword. "You're a monster," she snarled, taking a defensive stance.

"Actually, I'm a sentient being created by the reformatting of a discarded Control Spire. 'Monster' is such an inelegant term." Raymond snapped his fingers, and two more Breloom appeared. "Now these, these are monsters in the term that you mean."

Yohko's grip on her sword tightened. Where was Becca, she wondered silently.

--

Becca and Tururiemon leaped back as a ten-foot mechanical monstrosity slammed a claw into the ground. It resembled two packing crates stacked on top of each other, three legs holding it up, and two long arms with exposed hydraulic lines, crude hands tipped by metallic claws. It had no head, but a video screen in the chest, protected by a window of transparent armour, showed the smirking image of a grey-haired man, left eye covered by a metallic plate. "Long time, little Rebecca. How's your pet...oh, I forgot. Terribly sorry." Becca snarled, landing a powerful kick right in the center of the screen. While not breaking, the window did spider-web, making the face on the screen flinch back. "Ohh, did I hit a-" that was cut off as Tururiemon leaped over Becca, and drove her weapon through the plate glass, wrecking the video screen. The speakers still blared on, however. "You know, if you keep wrecking my things, I might become perturbed."

Becca stepped back, readying another attack on the robot, when a strong hand clamped down on her shoulder. She dropped, rolled to the side, and stood, looking right at Donald.

"See? I got perturbed, and I had to leave my nice, comfortable laboratory. Now," he sighed, hands cracling with electricity, "how shall I express my displeasure?" He reached forward, aimed at the ninja's neck.

Becca stepped ahead, grabbed Donald's arm, swung him around, and slammed him face-first into a wall, while Tururiemon busied herself with taking the robot apart. She then forced Donald's arm up, slammed her foot into the back of Donald's knee, released him, then delivered a crushing roundhouse to the back of his head. She then back off as her attacker, ebony interior now mostly exposed, recovered and started stumbling towards her. "Impressive attack, my dear. But you do know that such tricks won't work on this body.

"No," Becca responded a bit impishly. "How about that?" She pointed above and behind him, as Tururiemon finished wrecking one of the robot's legs. It pivoted forward, and fell on top of the mad scientist, driving him into the ground.

"Th...this won't stop me..." a black form, humanoid but missing most of its lower body and one arm, struggled out from under the wreckage. Becca and Tururiemon could already see the damaged limbs starting to generate new crystals. In a few hours, he'd be mobile. Two or three days, Donald's human-looking 'shell' would have recovered. "You'll pay..."

"The only reason I'm not finishing you off now," Becca said, a bit coldly, "is because I have to go help some friends. Cross me again, and I might not be so charitable." She got up, and started walking away. "Oh, and never call me 'Rebecca'. Got it?"

"Yes'm," Donald managed before passing out.

--

The tip of Yohko's sword touched the ground lightly as the second Breloom fell to the ground, knocked out. "Well," the swordswoman asked levelly. The remaining Breloom stood by Raymond, seemingly unmoved. "What, you thought I was some bloodthirsty barbarian? I can knock attackers out without hurting them. Unlike you, apparently." She glanced behind; Kyoko stood her ground, Zangoose at her side; the recovering pokemon had managed to dispatch the second Breloom, its innate tolerance for poisons giving it an edge in the battle against the plant type pokemon. Kyoko seemed to be wavering a bit, as if she was trying to do something but not sure how. "Are you OK?"

"Yeah," Kyoko replied. "But...it's like when I met Zangoose. I think...whatever I did to Zangoose is reacting to the Breloom's auras."

Yohko frowned. She had no experience with psychic powers outside the movies, but 'out of control paranormal ability' didn't sound that good to her. "Okay," she whispered. "We'll back off for now."

"Please," Raymond said, grinning. "Don't leave yet, there's so much to discuss. Your friend Kyoko has some fascinating abilities, ones we find a bit disturbing to our cause. We must find a way to counter them, in order to complete our mission. And you'll find we'll take any steps necessary. Like this!" He snapped his fingers.

The two Breloom that had been knocked out got to their feet, staggering towards Kyoko and Salamon. Zangoose stood protectively in front of them. "No...you're killing them!" Indeed, Kyoko oculd almost feel the remaining life force being drained out of them as the sinister control Raymond exerted over the two forced them to stand and resume their attack.

"So? Wake up, little girl, this isn't a game. No rules, no complex codes of conduct. You have something I want, so I'm taking it."

Kyoko started to speak, then gripped her head as what felt like a sharp spike of ice-cold pain stabbed through her mind. "Please..." she murmured. To Yohko's surprise, Raymond seemed unsettled by Kyoko's affliction. "Please..." she said, a bit louder.

"Get her!" Raymond ordered. The three Breloom advanced, fists raised.

"please..." Kyoko almost sobbed, the agony she was experiencing was so great. "please...PLEASE STOP IT!" As she screamed, Yohko felt something like a wave pass through her; for a moment, she felt extremely disoriented. She heard Kyoko collapse behind her, Salamon falling in a heap on top of Zangoose, and, for a brief second, she could see the black aura around the three Breloom.

The effect on the attacking pokemon was more dramatic. The two Breloom that had just staggered to their feet collapsed again, clearly spent, while the third one suddenly turned and attacked Raymond in a blind rage, howling in unchecked fury. "Stop that!" Raymond snarled, bringing an arm up. "You obey -me-!" The attacking pokemon ignored him, landing a solid uppercut on the man's face, then swinging his tail around, releasing all the spores it had stored up. They reacted on exposure to air, floating everywhere. Yohko accidentaly inhaled some of the powder and staggered, watching with some satisfaction as Raymond turned and ran from the pokemon he had only just recently dominated. Her stomach clenched., making her double over.

"Oh yeah...Stun Spore..." she gasped as she passed out.

--

"...been a ninja like me, you'd have been a lot lighter to carry." Yohko slowly awoke, then gagged as something bitter assaulted her sense of taste. "Easy," Becca whispered. "You inhaled a lot of that Stun Spore. I gave you something to get it out of your system, but it was kinda gross and disgusting."

Slowly, Yohko sat up, trying not to throw up from even that small amount of exertion. "What happened?"

"I was hoping you could tell me," Becca replied. "I found you and Kyoko passed out, and three Breloom, one still on a rampage. We managed to subdue him and took the three of them and you here to a hideout we used to use."

"We?"

Becca sighed. "It's gotten worse since I was here last. You know those goons we fought back there and at your home were from a group called Cipher, right?" Yohko nodded; she'd heard Raymond drop that name. "Cipher's not just a bunch of pokemon thieves; they take pokemon and do...things to them. You know what I mean." Yohko caught the tremble in Becca's voice; the ninja wasn't telling her everything, but that could wait. "They work for some mad scientist type near where the old Battle Colloseum used to be, in the centre of Oore. He created Donald, Raymond, and Miriam to gather pokemon and any digimon they came across. And no, I don't know why."

"Where's Kyoko?"

"Next room," Becca replied. "Tururiemon's looking after her. I think I know where we can get help for her, but we'll have to hurry."

Yohko nodded. "Lead on."

--

Donald shivered as he felt his energy being drained off. "Really, DOnald," the masked man said, not bothering to look at him. "I didn't design you to fight, to stay back and work on my inventions. And yet you disobeyed my instructions. And got beaten up. By a girl."

"Well, it was a very professional job," Miriam remarked, not reacting in the slightest to the masked man's tone. "Was it the ninja or the samurai? I am -so- curious."

"Ninja," Donald grunted; a flesh-coloured material slowly oozed out of the ebon arm, making it look somewhat human. "Her and that digimon partner of hers. Be careful, Miriam, they might give you a run for your money."

"I'm the close combat specialist, dearie," Miriam responded a bit acidy. "Leave the battle evaluations to me." She looked around. "Where's Raymond."

"Sulking," Donald said a bit bitterly. "That girl with the Salamon was able to disrupt his control of the Breloom that Patrick pr-"

The masked man swung around, grabbing Miriam by the throat. "-Never- use that name. Understand?"

"Urk...I..."

"UNDERSTAND?"

"Yes! Professor Hamilton..."

The man released his death-grip on Miriam, who collapsed to the ground. "You would be wise to obey me next time, One," he snapped at Donald. "Remaking you would require only a little effort. Three, repair yourself and find those intruders. They may try to make contact with the resistance."

"Yes sir..." Miriam replied, still shaken.

"Bring me the girl and her Salamon. The rest are expendable, you may...indulge yourself with them."

Miriam bowed, her normal personality restored. "Well, since you asked so nicely."

Professor Hamilton truned, then stopped. "Three, did you get their names?"

"Yes. The samurai is one Yohko Tachikawa. She was the former owner of the Tsunomon that we took. The psychic is Kyoko Kamiya, and-"

"Kamiya?"

"Yes. Does that name mean something to you?"

Hamilton paused. "There was a Koushiro Kamiya I met once many years ago. He possessed some intelligence, but was a naieve fool, like the rest. Now go." Hamilton left the room.

Miriam narrowed her eyes, making a note of the information. This, she thought to herself, could be useful.

--

Tururiemon looked worriedly at Kyoko, who was still unconcious. Becca and Yohko stepped into the room, curious about her condition. "She's still out of it, and Salamon just went under too. We need to get them to the lab. Where's Kosuke?"

"Getting the transport," Becca replied. "But he's not ready for this, if it's what I think it is."

Yohko glanced at the ninja. "You know what's happening to her?"

"I think so, but I'm not 100 sure. Was she psychic before?"

"No, I...no way..." Yohko glanced at Kyoko, who was still moaning quietly.

"I know a psychic. I think her talent just opened up, and her mind's trying to process all the noise she's receiving." There was a knock from above. "Oh, good, he's here. Come on, help me carry them up."

"Where are we taking her?"

"Out of town's the first step," Tururiemon replied. "Less mental chatter in the big wide open. Plus you'll be harder to find after all that ruckus you two started." The digimon grinned at the swordswoman. "Maybe after I finish with Becca, I can teach you a thing or two. You would-be samurai, always running around hitting things..."

"Like you're one to talk," Yohko replied absently, helping Becca pick Kyoko up. Tururiemon carried Salamon in his arms. Yohko frowned, feeling a strange...fuzziness in her mind.

"Focus," Becca said, voice oddly strained. "She's picking up any stray thoughts." Quickly, the group left the small room, and clambered into the back of a waiting transport. "I know who can help her," she insisted.

To be continued.

Next Episode:  
-The two digidestined meet the leaders of the remaining resistance to Cipher in Oore, Kyoko learns just what effect the Black Spore had on her, and Professor Hamilton reveals just what he has in mind for the region, and why he needs digimon for his experiments. Next, on Digicross: The Devil Meteor of Oore.  
'The cruel experiments of Patrick Hamilton'

"For what they did...there can be no forgiveness..."


End file.
